Singapore Inflation November 2016

Singapore: Consumer prices stay flat in November

December 23, 2016

In November, consumer prices in Singapore grew 0.3% over the previous month, contrasting the 0.3% drop recorded in October. According to Statistics Singapore, the reading mainly reflected higher prices for clothing and footwear and for housing and utilities.

Consumer prices were unchanged on an annual basis in November, up from October’s 0.1% decrease. The result matched market expectations and was the highest in more than two years. The annual average variation in consumer prices inched up from October’s minus 0.7% to minus 0.6%.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) core inflation measure, which excludes the cost of accommodation and private road transport, recorded a 1.3% increase in November, which represented a larger increase than October’s 1.1% reading and the highest print since February 2015.

The MAS expects the average inflation to be between 0.5% and 1.5% in 2017. FocusEconomics Consensus Forecast panelists expect inflation of 0.8% in 2017, which is unchanged unchanged from last month’s estimate. For 2018, the panel sees average inflation at 1.4%.

According to revised data released by the Ministry of Trade and Industry on 11 August, Singapore’s GDP expanded a revised 2.2% in Q2 from the previous quarter at a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate (SAAR), improving notably from the preliminary estimate of a 0.4% expansion and reversing Q1’s revised 2.1% contraction (previously reported: -1.9% SAAR).